Top 5 Reasons You Should Play Master X Master

Master X Master has finally launched in June 2017 and we have to admit that a while ago, we were afraid it wouldn’t come to North America and Europe at all. Luckily, NCSoft decided that its game had something valuable to offer to western players and went for it. The effort was absolutely worth it, because Master X Master (also known as MXM) isn’t your typical MOBA game. In fact, reducing this game to the tired multiplayer online battle arena stigma would be an understatement that we’re not willing to make. So, what makes this title one of the best free online games of 2017? Read on and discover in our Top 5 Reasons You Should Play Master X Master.

It’s more than a MOBA

Master X Master isn’t your traditional MOBA game. Well, in fact, it is in a certain way, as you can always fight other players or the AI in 3v3 and 5v5 and enjoy your time, but that’s just looking at a fraction of the game. What is unusual about such a game is the other main mode, the cooperative PvE dungeons. You can go solo or with up to three friends, exploring locations from some popular NCSoft games and you’ll be surprised at just how well fleshed-out this mode is, how polished it is. For something that most, if not all MOBAs ignore, and something that could be understandably considered an afterthought, this is a surprising and refreshing addition. It’s like its own game, a proper action-adventure where you least expected it, with good level design and interesting, sometimes stunning boss battles. There are also some crazy mini-games planned. If you hate MOBAs, Master X Master has something else in store for you.

It’s NCsoft’s Heroes of the Storm

There’s no better game to compare Master X Master than to Blizzard’s Heroes of the Storm. They’re both MOBAs – although MXM does something else, as we mentioned above – and both games dive into each developer’s glorious catalogue. While Blizzard handpicks characters from Diablo, Starcraft or World of Warcraft, among others, NCSoft ‘borrows’ from Blade & Soul, Guild Wars 2, Aion, Lineage, WildStar or City of Heroes. However, the South Korean developer also added many original characters to Master X Master, resulting in an odd but pleasant mix for a game with a sci-fi theme – and nothing could ever be more peculiar than seeing characters from Diablo and Starcraft battling together, anyway. NCSoft’s major upcoming title is the Lineage Eternal MMORPG, and this one should provide a few more interesting characters for Master X Master.

Tag System

Master X Master brings a big, almost unique twist to the traditional MOBA gameplay: you can pick two Masters and switch between them on-the-fly. This is the tag system and allows players to diversify their range with two severely distinct Masters, providing two different approaches to each moment of gameplay. It’s up to you to choose the ones you feel more comfortable with and switch when it feels appropriate, or to regenerate one’s health. What may seem a bit odd at first quickly becomes natural and adds another layer to a game that was already rich enough to keep you entertained.

Gameplay is fun

Most of the time, MOBA controls are as much fun as sand in your underpants. You learn them, endure them and they become second nature due to your resilient self. But just admit it, it would be so much better if controls were intuitive and easy to grasp from the very beginning. Well, in Master X Master they are, as the developers chose the tried-and-tested WASD movement and mouse controlled targeting method that very few have tried – Battlerite is one of the few laudable exceptions. You can also pick up your game controller, but this keyboard and mouse combination is so much cooler, more suited to experienced PC gamers and gives MXM a feel of a third-person arcade shooter. You know, the kind that Housemarque is famous for developing. This is fun action combat, not your snail-paced clickity-clack kind of gameplay.

Visually accomplished

Listen to this one: we’ve read somewhere that Master X Master “looks like a mobile game”. Lul wat? No, really, if this is someone’s definition of mobile game graphics then your tablet must have come from the future. Sure, mobile games have come a long way and some of them look really good, but you need to see the whole picture, and the whole picture in MXM includes things such as a lobby with hundreds of players, a co-op adventure with four nicely detailed and animated playable characters, huge bosses, plenty of visual and lighting effects and way more. Nothing about it looks mobile, not even close to browser-based, this is a full-fledged PC client game. Geez, kids are spoiled these days…

Bonus: Statesman

Alright, this one stirred up a few memories. NCSoft infamously decided to shut down City of Heroes in 2012 and was on the end of a lot of social media hate for that. Including Statesman (and also Ghost Widow) from that beloved superhero MMO in Master X Master was a controversial decision, but it was considered by the devs as an homage to the game, not to aggravate fans. Both characters are there, you can pick them, or you can rage about it and ignore them. At least you’re given the choice.

These are our Top 5 Reasons You Should Play Master X Master. We hope it gave you a nice, overall description of the game in case you didn’t know about it already. It’s a fun game and you can choose to go on an action adventure with a few mates or dive headfirst into the competitive side of it. Either way, it’s one of the top free games of 2017 and deserves some love.